Pokémon: Origins
by Th3nerdy0ne
Summary: Join the adventures of the early years of Ash's father, David and his friends, Georgiou and Delia as they travel across Kanto on their Pokémon journey where they'll face tough challenges, make dangerous enemies and do battle with the mysterious new group, Team Rocket.
1. Prologue

**Hello ladies and gentlemen and welcome to the first chapter of my new fanfic. I'm honestly really excited about this story, I got a ton of ideas ready to go and I hope you'll enjoy them. I won't give anything away I'll just let you read on. Enjoy.**

**Mighty disclaimer: **I do not own Pokémon. Damn it.

**On with the story:**

* * *

**Pokémon: Origins**

**By**

**Th3nerdy0ne**

**Chapter 1: **Prologue

A young boy, no older than seven with short, dark brown hair and eyes of the same color, stood in the middle of a playground awkwardly as kids his age, younger and older ran around playing tag, chasing random Pokémon that found their way onto the playground, climbing on the jungle gym, playing hopscotch or just lying on the grass enjoying the sun. The young boy had still not comprehended how his life changed so fast in the space of three months. He still couldn't believe they were gone and that he was now standing in the middle of a playground belonging to the Viridian City Orphanage, alone. Though he was receiving help via therapy, he could still remember every detail of that night three months ago like it was a few hours ago.

* * *

**[Flashback]**

A brown haired boy woke up in the middle of the night to the sound of a window smashing downstairs. He immediately jumped out of bed and ran from his room to his parents' room. They had obviously heard the smash too because his father was grabbing a Pokéball from his nightstand drawer and enlarging it and walking out the door towards the stairs. Before the boy could follow, he was grabbed gently by his mother.

"Georgiou, stay up here with me sweetie." She said.

Georgiou nodded and watched as his father went down the stairs to the hall. It was silent for a few minutes and after a while, both mother and child thought that maybe it had just been a wild flying Pokémon that had accidentally crashed through their window. That was until they heard a sound like thunder from downstairs and a groan of pain. Instantly knowing what the sound was, the mother bent down, looked her son in the eyes and put on her best smile.

"Sweetie, go find a place to hide and don't come out of it until I say it's safe, okay? I'm going to see if your father's okay." Not questioning his mother, Georgiou nodded and ran out of his parents' room and looked for a place to hide while his mother grabbed a Pokéball and went downstairs as quietly as possible.

Georgiou had found a place to hide inside his bedroom closet. He sat there quietly while he waited for his mother or father to return. As he was waiting, he began to hear sounds from downstairs of what sounded like a struggle. The sounds went on for a few more moments before the silence returned. After another minute sounds of footsteps could be heard coming up the stairs. Georgiou's heart began to beat at a bullet speed rate as the foot steps were right outside his bedroom door. He heard his door creak open slowly and he could see a figure appear from the shadows.

The figure walked to a dresser in the room and turned a lamp on. With the light on, Georgiou got a good look at the figure. He was a young man with short, spiky blond hair, no older than eighteen, with dark green eyes, wearing an all black outfit and carrying a large black bag over his left shoulder. What Georgiou noticed most of all, was the big red "R" on the front of the black long-sleeved shirt. Then Georgiou noticed that in his right hand were two familiar looking Pokéballs. Then Georgiou noticed that one of them was covered in blood. He let of a quiet gasp but instantly covered his mouth as he did. The man in the room turned to face the closet after hearing the faint noise.

Georgiou's heart began to pound faster and faster with each step the man took. As the man reached the closet he put his hand on the handle and was ready to open it. Before he could, however, the sound of sirens could be heard in the distance. "Damn it." Georgiou heard the man say under his breath. The next thing Georgiou knew, the man was running out of his room in the direction of his parents' room and then a minute later, heard another window smash.

As the sirens grew louder and the sounds of multiple car doors opening could be heard, only one thing was going through the young boys mind. Were his parents alright?

* * *

**[One week later]**

As Georgiou stood there in the rain, watching as his parents were laid in their final place of rest, he found it hard to believe that this was all happening. He had over heard from one of the officers that the person that did this had not only taken his parents but had taken their Pokémon as well. Georgiou couldn't understand why someone would do this. When he saw the non-moving forms of his parents being brought out of his house that terrible night he hadn't spoken since. Too many emotions ran through his body at once that it was too much.

He was now completely alone in this world. He had no other family aside from his parents and now they were gone and there was nothing he could do about it no matter how much he wished there was.

The weeks that followed for Georgiou were spent in a psychiatrist's office, lying on a couch while a doctor asked him various questions about how he was feeling and more or less making sure the young boy's mental health was stable. After two months of therapy, the doctor had cleared Georgiou and told Officer Jenny that he was no longer required to see him as he had been given a clean bill of mental health, however he should still come for sessions every now and then for routine check ups.

One month later, Officer Jenny had taken Georgiou to the Viridian City Orphanage in hopes that he'd find a family again.

* * *

**[End flashback]**

So now, here Georgiou was. Standing in the middle of a playground, in a place he doesn't know, with people he didn't know. He was so caught up in his own thoughts that he didn't notice someone approach him. He was then snapped out of his thoughts as he was tapped on the shoulder by that same person.

Turning around, Georgiou came face to face with a boy, around six years old, with long, messy, raven-black hair and blue eyes. The boy smiled a toothy grin and held out his hand towards Georgiou.

"Hi there, you're new here, right?"

Georgiou didn't say anything but simply nodded. The raven-haired boy lowered his hand and looked quizzically at Georgiou. "Don't talk much, do ya?" Georgiou simply stared.

"You gotta a name?" The boy asked. Georgiou nodded. "Well, my name's David, David Ashton Ketchum, you?" The boy said, holding out his hand again.

Georgiou looked at David for a moment before taking the hand and shaking it. "My name's Georgiou. Georgiou Vanni."

David smiled his toothy grin again and brought his hand back down and put both hands in his pockets. "Nice to meet ya Georgiou, I have a feeling you and me are gonna be great friends." Georgiou smiled at this as he followed his new friend towards a small group of kids.

Maybe he won't be so lonely after all.

**Well there it is ladies and gentlemen. The first chapter in what will hopefully be an epic story of awesomeness, I hope you enjoyed it and as usual, let me know what you guys thought. I'll get to work on chapter two as soon as humanly possible and it should be out within a few weeks. Until then, live long and prosper and may the force be with you.**


	2. Meeting with destiny

**Here's chapter two, ladies and gentlemen. I honestly thought this would take longer to write but as it turns out, I have too much free time on my hands. Anyway, I hope you enjoy.**

**Disclaimer: **Still don't own Pokémon.

**On with the story:**

* * *

**Chapter 2: **Meeting with destiny

**[Three years later]**

A young girl of nine, with Auburn hair tied into two pigtails and russet eyes, was playing in her bedroom with a stuffed Pokémon toy.

"Delia. Come downstairs, honey, it's time to go." A voice called from downstairs.

The young girl put her toy down and ran out her bedroom door towards the stairs. When she got downstairs, she was greeted by an older woman in her mid-to-late thirties with, dark brown hair and golden-brown eyes. She turned to Delia with a big smile.

"You ready to go, dear?" She asked.

Delia nodded with a big smile of her own. "Yes mother." She said in a cheery voice. The woman nodded and held out her hand for Delia to take. Delia took her mother's hand and they both left their home.

* * *

The sun was shining over the small town of Pallet while the people of the town did their day-to-day tasks. Some people were gardening, some were loading or unloading bags of human and Pokémon food from trucks with the help of Machoke, some were doing their routine shopping for the week and one was doing some important research.

This person was Samuel Oak. An honored Pokémon professor, whose sole purpose is to study and further understand Pokémon. His lab was located on the largest hill in Pallet and was appointed by the Pokémon League as the official location in Kanto for trainers to get their starters for the beginning of their Pokémon journey.

The professor, himself, was a young man in his early thirties with short light-brown hair and brown eyes.

He was sitting at his desk in his lab, sticking a screwdriver into a red rectangular shaped device. "Just need to make an adjustment here and then we'll be ready to field test you." He said to himself. While working on the device, the professor didn't notice two people approaching him from the back door of the lab.

The woman, seeing that the professor's attention was fully on what he was working on, grew a mischievous grin, turned to the little girl holding her hand and moved her finger to her mouth to make a 'be quiet' gesture. The little girl nodded and then watched as the woman let go of her hand and approached the professor as quietly as possible. She was about to give the professor the scare of his life, when...

"Don't even think about it." Said the professor, without even turning around.

The woman face-faulted. The little girl saw the whole thing and let off a giggle. The woman picked herself up and stared at the professor, who was still working on the little device.

"How'd you know I was behind you?" The woman asked, a little annoyed that she was caught.

The professor turned from his work to face the two visitors, a smile on his face. "I've known you since we were kids, Amy. I know you too well."

Amy let off a 'hmph' and crossed her arms while the professor just chuckled. He then turned his attention to the young girl.

"Hello, Delia. How are you today?" He asked.

Delia walked over to the professor and her mother with a bright smile. "I'm fine professor. How are you?" She asked.

"Oh I'm fine. In fact, I've just finished working the kinks on my latest invention." The professor held out the little red device in his right hand. Both Delia and her mother looked curiously at the device.

"What is it Sam?" Amy asked.

The professor smiled. "This is what I like to call, a Pokédex." He held the device out to Delia and she took the device to inspect more closely.

"What does it do?" Delia asked.

"You point the device towards any Pokémon in Kanto or Johto and it instantly scans and then shows you the information of the Pokémon you scanned. Come, I'll show you." The professor gestured for the two girls to follow him to the enclosure out back.

When they went outside, they were met with a view of a large field with a few medium lakes and a large forest surrounding the area. The area was filled with different types of Pokémon from the Kanto and Johto areas all playing, resting, training or eating. The girls followed the professor to a stable where a few Ponyta resided.

"Now watch closely." The professor said as he pointed the Pokédex to a Ponyta.

After a few seconds there was a pinging sound and a picture of a Pokémon appeared. However the three people sweat-dropped at what picture appeared. Instead of a picture of a Ponyta, there was a picture of a Muk instead. What the voice coming from the device said next wasn't any better.

"Ponychu: The bug Pokémon. It flies over its wide territory in search of prey and the jets of water it fires from its rocket cannons on its shell can punch through thick steel."

The professor collapsed to the ground with a loud 'thud', while the two girls sweat-dropped. The professor stood back up with a sheepish grin.

"Well, maybe is one or two minor things I need to fix before I can send it off to the league to be green lighted." The professor placed the device in his lab coat pocket and he led the girls back to his lab. "So, what brings you two here, anyway?" The professor asked.

"Getting tired of us already, Sam?" Amy asked in a teasing tone. The professor just chuckled.

"Not at all. I'm just curious." He said.

"Me and mom are heading to Viridian to the big mall they have there and we were wondering if you'd like to come." Delia answered.

"Well that does sound like fun but sadly I'm afraid I can't. I still need to fix the Pokédex AND I have some paper work that needs doing on legendary Pokémon myths." The professor exclaimed with a sigh.

Delia looked a little sad at this but then gave a small smile. "Oh, well. Good luck with the Pokédex professor." Delia said in a cheery tone.

The professor chuckled and tussled Delia's brown hair. "Thank very much, Delia." He said cheerfully.

"Goodbye, Sam. I'll come see you when we get back." Amy said, taking Delia's hand and walking towards the front door.

"You're both welcome anytime." The professor said, waving goodbye to the two girls before turning back to his desk and placing the broken Pokédex on it. "And now back to you." He said with a serious look.

* * *

The trip to Viridian City was not a long one. By foot it would take someone roughly four days to reach Viridian through the forest. By car, however, it took little under half an hour.

As Delia and her mother entered the car park of Viridian's shopping mall, Delia was looking out her window in the back of the car. Admiring the beautiful buildings and laughing when wild Pokémon ran by. Amy finally parked the car and the two proceeded into the mall.

The inside of the mall was definitely a lot bigger than the outside. The mall was filled to the brim with various clothe shops, bakeries, jewelers, beauty parlors for both people and Pokémon and a large number of cafés and super markets.

The floor of the mall was covered in white tiles and at the very center of the mall was a large, circular mosaic forming with different colored tiles making the forms of Zapdos, Moltres, Articuno, Ho-Oh and Lugia all flying around a sun with sunlight shining down on them from the domed glass ceiling, giving the art an other-worldly feel.

This being her first time to Viridian mall, the sight amazed Delia. Her mother tapped her on the shoulder and Delia looked up.

"Honey, I'm just going to that bakery over there." She pointed to an old fashioned looking shop as she said this. "Wait over by the mosaic for me, kay?" Delia nodded and went towards the center of the mall where the mosaic resided.

While Delia was waiting for her mother to return, Delia was looking at each of the Pokémon depicted in the art_. _"So… Beautiful."She thought out loud admiringly.

Her thoughts were interrupted however, as someone bumped into her and they both fell to the ground with a 'thud'.

Groaning, Delia looked to her right to see a boy her age with raven black hair sitting up and rubbing the back of his head in pain. He turned to Delia and an angry look appeared on his face.

"Why don't you watch where you're going!" He snapped.

Delia's eyes widened and fury took over. She stood up and put her hands firmly on her hips, her eyes flaring with anger.

"ME?! You're the one that ran into me, jerk!"

Before the boy could make a retort, the sound of yelling could be heard from across the mall. Delia and the boy turned to see an angry looking blond man with a security guard running towards them.

"Damn it." The boy said under his breath.

Delia turned to face the boy with a smirk. "Friends of yours?" She asked in mock curiosity.

The boy sneered at Delia but didn't have time to say anything. He immediately got up was about to run when he felt something, or rather, someone grab his arm. Turning, the boy was face to face with Delia who was holding onto his arm to make sure he didn't go anywhere.

"Where do you think you're going?" She asked, the smirk growing more evil. The boy's eyes widened in shock and he tried desperately to pull his arm out of her grip with little success.

"Ah, ah, ah. You're not getting away that easily." Delia said in a sing song voice.

The boy looked pleadingly at Delia. "Please let me go. Come on, I'm sorry I ran into ya, alright? Now let me go." The boy pleaded while still trying to pull out of her grip. Delia just kept smiling.

"I don't think so."

As the blond and the security guard got ever closer, the boy had to think fast. After a few seconds of thinking, he sighed and relaxed. This made Delia loosen her grip as she believed that the boy decided to give up. This was a mistake however as the boy immediately yanked his arm away from her and started running while yelling behind him.

"SUCKER!"

Delia was now both shocked and angry. Making a decision, she started chasing after the boy.

She followed him out of the mall and down the street to the right. "COME BACK HERE YOU JERK!" She yelled at the running boy.

The boy quickly glanced back at Delia then brought his attention back to what was in front of him. "WHY ARE YOU FOLLOWING ME?!" He yelled back to her.

"YOU KNOCK ME OVER, BLAME ME FOR IT, YOU'VE CLEARLY DONE SOMETHING WRONG AND ABOVE ALL YOU WERE VERY RUDE!" As she said this they ran into a park with a large lake.

"SO WHAT, YOU WANT AN APOLOGY?!" He yelled as they ran past the lake.

"YES!" Delia yelled.

Delia was so caught up in the moment that she didn't notice the small rock stuck in the ground. She tripped on it and fell into the lake. The boy stopped after hearing the splash and turned to see what happened. Seeing what happened to Delia, the boy started laughing and rolling on the ground. He stopped however, after hearing frantic cries coming from the lake.

"HELP! HELP, I CAN'T SWIM!" The cries were coming from Delia.

The boy ran towards where she fell in and saw her flailing about in the lake trying to stay up. The boy was about to jump in before he thought of something.

"How do I know this isn't a trick?!" He asked.

Delia's eyes widened at the question. "I'M NOT LYING, YOU IDIOT, JUST SHUT UP AND HELP ME!"

After saying this, Delia was completely sub-merged under water. The boy's eyes widened and he started to panic when she didn't re-surface. "Oh no." Not wasting any more time, the boy dived into the lake to find Delia.

Delia was desperately trying to trying to swim back to the surface with little success. She wouldn't give up though. As she kept kicking furiously with her legs, she began to feel consciousness slip away as her eyes began to close. Before she was completely unconscious, she felt a pair of hands grab under both her arms and pull her back to the surface of the lake. Once both she and her rescuer broke the surface of the lake they took in as much air as possible. Delia's vision began to clear up and she turned to look at her rescuer.

It was none other than the boy that she was chasing just a few minutes ago.

Once they reached the edge of the lake the boy helped Delia to get out of the lake and then pulled himself out once she was out. The boy then fell on his back and lay on the grass, breathing heavily. He was shortly joined by Delia who was breathing just as heavily. After a minute or two, the boy finally spoke.

"Are you okay?" He asked with slight concern.

Delia turned to face the boy. She looked into his blue eyes for a moment and felt her cheeks go warm. She immediately looked away before finally speaking.

"Yes I am. Thank you."

The boy nodded and looked back up at the sky. After another minute, Delia spoke up.

"So, what'd you steel?" She asked.

The boy sat up and looked at her quizzically. "What do you mean?"

Delia sat up now and looked the boy in the eyes. "From the mall, what did you take?"

The boy looked away towards the sky. "I didn't take anything." He said honestly.

Delia raised an eye brow at the boy. "Then why were those guys chasing you?" The boy chuckled and looked back at her.

"We just had a, '_disagreement'_." He said adding air quotes to disagreement.

"I see." Delia said, crossing her arms, still looking at the boy with an accusing look.

"So, you gotta name?" The boy asked, wanting to change the subject. Delia smirked and shook her head but answered.

"Delia."

The boy smiled and held out his hand. "Nice to meet ya. I'm David."

Delia just looked at his hand and then back up at him. David slowly put his hand down and then put the other behind his head.

"So, where're you from?" He asked, giving a toothy grin.

Though she was still a little mad, Delia thought it would be rude not to answer, especially after he saved her life. "Pallet Town." She finally answered.

David smirked. "Oh. A country girl, huh? I hear it's nice up there."

Delia's right eye twitched at the 'country girl' remark but continued. "Yes it is. It's a lot quieter than here."

David chuckled at that. "Yeah, Viridian can be loud."

"And crowded." Delia added.

"Yes, and crowded." David agreed, laughing as he did. "So, if you're from Pallet, what're you doing in Viridian?" David asked.

"I came here to do some shopping in the mall here with my mo…" Delia's eyes grew wide in both shock and realization and she jumped to her feet. "Oh my Arceus, My mom, she's back at the mall. She's probably worried sick right now! I don't even know where I am!" Delia began panicking and breathing very heavily.

David stood up and placed both hands on her shoulders. "Calm down, I'll take you back to the mall. Just follow me." David took Delia's hand and ran back the way they came, dragging her with him.

* * *

When David and Delia arrived back at the mall, they stooped a few feet away and saw a woman, a blond man and a security guard talking to an Officer Jenny. Delia recognized the woman instantly.

"That's my mom over there." Delia pointed out.

David saw the woman and the Officer Jenny and nodded.

"Well, this is where we say goodbye." David said.

Delia looked back at David and nodded. "I guess so." She said.

Though she didn't know why, Delia couldn't help but feel a pang of sadness as she said that. Yes, this boy caused her to have a headache of a day but he seemed nice enough. She turned and began heading towards her mother.

"See ya 'round country girl." David said with a playful smirk. Delia's eye twitched again.

"Delia." She said through gritted teeth.

David chuckled as he watched Delia return to her mother. He then turned on a heel and disappeared.

* * *

It was quiet in the dorm room of ten year old Georgiou Vanni. He was lying on his bed, a Meowth curled up at the foot of his bed and reading a large book entitled _'How to make the perfect business.'_

People who didn't know Georgiou would find it odd for a boy his age to be reading such a heavy book. But not to people who did know him, for you see, Georgiou was very intelligent for a boy his age. He was top of his class in all subjects and many of his teachers agreed that he had a bright future ahead of him. He looked away from his book to stare at the empty bed across from his. Shaking his head he went back to reading his book.

Just then, the window to his room opened up and none other than David climbed in. Looking up from his book, Georgiou eyed his best friend with an accusing gaze. David looked at him and shrugged. "What?" Georgiou went back to reading his book.

"You're late."

David shrugged again. "And?"

"It's past curfew. Deveroux was pretty angry when he asked me where you were." David's eyes grew wide at this.

"And what'd you tell 'im?" David asked as he went to pet Meowth. The normal-type Pokémon gave a content purr. Georgiou turned the page of his book and continued reading.

"I said that Nurse Joy kept you back for another while to help her move some new medical equipment. He still seemed angry but not as angry as before."

David let off a sigh of relief. "Thanks, Giou. I owe you one."

"MORE than one, David." Georgiou corrected with a smirk. David rolled his eyes, went over to his bed, fell back onto it and stared at the ceiling.

"So where were you really?" Georgiou asked, still looking at the book. David continued staring at the ceiling.

"The mall." He answered.

Georgiou sighed. "What'd you break?"

David looked at his roommate with wide eyes. "What makes you think I broke something?" Georgiou looked away from his book and at David.

"Because, my incompetent fool of a best friend, I know you too well. You are completely accident prone. Everything you touch breaks." David gave Georgiou an incredulous look. "Does not!"

"What about the vase in the lobby?"

"Oh come on, it's not my fault the janitor forgot to put up a wet floor sign."

"Our classroom window."

"In my defense, I didn't see the duct tape holding it in place."

"Mrs. Applebee."

David gave Georgiou another incredulous look. "Really? You're going to blame that on me?" Georgiou shrugged.

"Whatever it takes to get my point across."

David just crossed his arms and looked back up at the ceiling. Giving a heavy sigh, David finally spoke up.

"I may or may not have dropped a glass model of a Dragonite causing it to smash."

David turned back to see Georgiou shaking his head and giving David a look that said _'really?'_ David turned back to face the ceiling. "Anyway that's not why I was late." This caught Georgiou's attention.

"Oh? What happened?" Georgiou asked.

David sighed. "You wouldn't believe me even if I told you."

Georgiou smirked. "Try me."

David thought for a moment then shrugged. "Alright." He started. "When I was running out of the mall I ran into a girl. When I got back up I ran for the exit and she followed, demanding an apology. She followed me until we reached the park where she tripped and fell into the lake."

"Oh, the first girl to ever fall for you." Georgiou joked.

David scowled at him but continued on, ignoring the bad joke.

"Anyway, turns out she couldn't swim, so I dove in to save her. When I pulled her out, we both fell on the grass and talked for the next few minutes. After that I brought her back to the mall because her mom was there looking for her. After that I came back here." David finished.

Georgiou looked at him for moment with a blank expression before speaking. "You're right, I don't believe you." David sat up and looked at Georgiou.

"It's the truth. She's a country girl, from Pallet Town."

"Alright, alright. So this _'country girl', _does she have a name or what?" David lay back down on his bed and stared back up at the ceiling. A small smile crept onto his face.

"Yeah. Delia."

**That was chapter two ladies and gentlemen, I hope you enjoyed it. Not gonna lie, this was a tough one to write. But I like how it turned out. Any who, Leave a review and let me know what you thought. I'll get to work on chapter three and have it out as soon as possible. Until then, live long and prosper and may the force be with you.**


	3. Pokémon, I choose you

**Well here's chapter three in the Origins story ladies and gentlemen. It's a little slow at the start but once the starters come in to the mix, that's when things get fun. Hope you enjoy and I'll see you at the end.**

**Disclaimer: **Don't own Pokémon.

**On with the story:**

* * *

**Chapter 3: **Pokémon, I choose you

**[One year later]**

"DAVID, WAKE UP, YOU'RE GONNA BE LATE!"

David's eyes shot open in an instant and he shot up from his bed only to bang his head into something. Groaning and holding his head with his hand, David turned to his right to be met with the sight of Georgiou on the ground with swirls in his eyes.

"Ow..."

"Whoops." David said with a sheepish smile as he put a hand on the back of his head. "Sorry Giou."

"Just... Get dressed..." Georgiou said rather groggily, still on the floor with swirls in his eyes. David complied, jumped out of bed and went to his closet on his side of the room.

He dressed himself in a white t-shirt, a light-brown jacket, denim jeans, black trainers and a black backpack. "How do I look?"

Georgiou was finally standing upright again and gave his best friend a once over. "You look like you're ready to start your Pokémon journey." He said, giving a thumbs up. His Meowth nodded in approval. David smiled, gave a nod in thanks and headed out the door.

"Hey David." Georgiou called out.

David stuck his head back into the room. "Happy birthday."

"Thanks." David said cheerfully.

"I'll meet you at the Pokémon Center when you're back." Georgiou said. David nodded.

"Right, wish me luck." With that, David turned back around and ran down the hallway towards the exit of the building. Georgiou just shook his head and looked at Meowth.

"He can't sit still for a minute, can he?"

"Meow Meowth." Meowth agreed with a smile.

* * *

David ran out of the building and down a street towards a bus stop. His eyes widened when he saw that the bus at the stop was nearly ready to leave. Picking up the pace, David broke into a full sprint towards the bus. Just as the doors where about to close, David dived through them and landed face first on the floor. The doors then closed and the bus started moving.

David picked himself up and looked at the driver of the bus, who was giving David an odd look. David pulled his bag off, opened it and pulled out a wallet. He payed the fair for the bus and went to take a seat near a window.

"Pallet Town, here I come." He said with a smile.

* * *

The trip to Pallet was short but uneventful. TOO uneventful for David's liking. The entire Journey he was fidgeting around in his seat and constantly tapping his hands on his legs, making some kind of drum beat. The bus pulled up to the bus stop outside of a large building on top of a hill. David stepped out of the bus and stretched his arms and legs as far as he could.

"Finally!" He exclaimed with a sigh.

After his short stretch, he began making his way up to the building on the hill. Once at the front door, he knocked and waited for someone to answer. David could hear movement inside and then heard a click from the door. The door opened and someone appeared in the doorway. David's eyes widened at the person who answered the door.

"No-"

"Way."

"Hello country girl." David greeted with a teasing smile.

Delia was the one who answered the door, her eye twitching yet again at the _'country girl' _comment. "De-" She began before being cut off.

"Delia. I remember." David said, a cocky grin replacing his teasing one.

Delia was slightly taken off guard by that, but quickly recovered for a retort. "Oh, so you do have a brain after all." She said, a grin of her own appearing. David face faulted at the comment and Delia giggled at his reaction. "So, what're you doing here?" She asked. David picked himself up and walked into the building, standing in a waiting room.

"I'm here to get my starter from Professor Oak. This is his lab, right?" David asked, a little unsure.

"Yes, it's his lab." Delia confirmed. David nodded and sat down on a chair to wait.

"What about you?" David asked. Delia sat one chair away from David to his right.

"Same as you. I've been waiting fifteen minutes now for the professor to show up." Delia answered.

"What are you gonna choose for you starter?" David asked. Delia shrugged.

"I dunno. I'll decide when I'm in there I guess. You?" David looked up as if in deep thought for a moment before finally answering.

"Well, I've been thinking about this choice for the past week. It's been tough, but I think I've finally come to a decision."

"What will you choose?"

David smirked. "You'll just have to wait and see."

Just then, a door opened and the professor appeared from the doorway. He saw the two kids and smiled welcomingly at them. "Well hello, Delia. How are you today?"

Delia smiled at the professor and stood up to shake his hand. "I'm fine professor. I'm really excited to get my starter today."

"As you should be. A Pokémon journey is one of the most important things in a young persons life. Having a Pokémon with you and bonding with each other will teach you the true values of life. At least, that's what I learned on my journey." The professor then turned to David, who was now standing next to Delia, and held out his hand to the young boy, smiling while he did.

"Hello there young man. Professor Samuel Oak at your service." David took the offered hand and shook it with a smile of his own.

"Nice to meet ya. David Ashton Kecthum."

The professor's eyebrows raised a little at this as he pulled his hand away, but neither David nor Delia noticed. "Ashton?" he asked. David nodded.

"Yeah. It was my dad's name."

Delia raised an eye brow at that. _'_Was _his dad's name?' _She thought. The professor however, didn't seem to notice this, as he made a gesture to follow him through the door he just came from.

They followed the professor until they reached a room with a couple dozen computers lined up along the walls, a few wires hanging from the ceiling and a table in the center of the room. On the table, were three red and white spheres. On each of the spheres was a marking to indicate what Pokémon type resided in each one. There was a boy standing next to the table, his hand hovering over the three balls as if carefully contemplating which one to choose.

"Michael, I'm back." The professor called.

Michael turned to face the professor, David and Delia. He had short dark-brown hair that was spiked in certain places, emerald eyes and a cocky grin plastered on his face. "Hey dad. What took you so long?" He asked.

"I just went to the lobby to see if anyone else showed up and they have." The professor moved aside a little to allow Delia and David to walk fully into the room.

"Hello Michael." Delia said. Her tone suggesting she wasn't particularly fond of the boy.

"Delia, what a nice surprise. Here to give me a good luck kiss before I head out on my journey?" Michael asked. His cocky grin growing ever wider.

"Keep it up and you'll be getting a kick to head." Delia threatened, clenching her hands into fists.

"You? Kick me? Please. You couldn't kick a Pilates ball if it were glued to floor." Michael retorted. David just watched on in fascination.

"That's enough you two." The professor stepped in between the two arguing kids.

Michael chuckled. "Aw, come on dad. We were just kiddin' around."

"You might've been." Delia scoffed. The professor gave her a look telling her to 'let it go'. She sighed and put her hands up in defeat.

"Well that was different." David commented. Michael just then noticed David in the room.

"And who're you?" He asked. David walked passed Delia and the professor and held his hand out to Michael.

"David Ashton Ketchum. Nice to meet ya." Michael didn't even look at the hand and looked back over to the spheres on the table.

"_Ketchum_? Funny name."

David put his hand down and got a little annoyed at the remark but decided to leave it alone. The professor's voice brought him back to reality.

"This is my son, Michael." The professor introduced. Michael didn't even turn back around. He just kept staring at the spheres.

"(cough)jerk(cough)jerk." David fake coughed under his breath. This caused Delia to giggle. The professor's voice got their attention again.

"Now then. As you can see, on the table are three Pokéballs. Inside each..." Before the professor could continue, David raised his hand to ask a question. "Yes David?"

David cleared his throat a little before continuing. "Sorry professor it's just, I thought Pokéballs were silver with a little valve on top that you twist and it opens that way." The professor nodded in understanding his confusion.

"That was the older models' design, yes. These are the new models. They're battery powered however. Each battery lasts up to two months. After that, you either take it to a recharge point at a Pokémon center or use a portable charger which you'll receive in a few moments. After the two month mark they become useless if not recharged on time." The professor answered. David nodded and allowed the professor to continue."

"Now, as I was saying, in each Pokéball is a Pokémon that you three will use through out your journey. You will train together and hopefully form a strong bond with each other." The professor then moved behind the table to allow the three kids to approach the front. "Now." He continued. "On each Pokéball, there is a marking. Each marking represents the element type of the Pokémon in each ball. As you can see, one has a leaf, one has a water droplet and one has a flame. Grass, water and fire." The professor paused to make sure the three kids were following. They nodded which gave him the sign to continue. "Now, as well as your starter you will each recieve five Pokéballs, a trainer ID card, a camera and a journal and a portable charger for the Pokéballs. The Pokéballs to capture any wild Pokémon you find out in the world, the camera to take pictures of these Pokémon, the journal to stick the pictures of each Pokémon seen or captured into it and write what information you might've gathered on them, the charger for the Pokéballs and the ID to prove that you are a Pokémon trainer."

"Wait, professor?" Delia spoke up.

"Yes, Delia, You have a question?" Delia nodded and continued.

"Yeah, what happened to the Pokédex? I thought you said you fixed it." The professor frowned and his shoulders slumped.

"So did I. I managed to fix the identity problem but now it's started insulting people. It called me stupid last night." The professor sighed sadly. Delia sweat dropped at the answer she received.

"So, do you three understand everything I've just told you?"

The three nodded to show they understood and the professor backed away from the table. "Now then, it's time to make your choice. Delia, you may go first."

Delia was about to step forward before Michael pushed past. "Wait a sec dad, why does she get to go first?" He whined. The professor rolled his eyes.

"It's the gentlemanly thing to do, Michael." The professor said, crossing his arms.

"Yeah Michael. Haven't you ever heard of ladies first?" Delia said with a smirk.

"So let me know when one shows up." Michael retorted. That struck a nerve.

The next thing Michael saw was the floor of the room, a medium sized lump on his head. Delia was wiping her hands together, a triumphant smile on her face. "I will when you tell me when a real man shows up." She said as she walked up to the table.

David and Professor Oak stood to the side with sweat drops. "I feel sorry for the guy that falls for her." Said David in a whisper. The professor nodded in agreement.

Meanwhile, Delia stood over the three spheres and carefully moved her hand over each one, taking great care in which type she chose. After five minutes of thinking, Delia chose one. She picked it up off the table and held it in her right hand. Smiling, she threw the ball into the air. The ball opened and a blue,flour legged creature with a green bulb on its back appeared from the white light.

"Bulba Saur." It said happily, running and jumping into Delia's arms.

"Well aren't you the cutest Bulbasaur EVER!" Delia exclaimed happily. Bulbasaur snuggled up to it's new master happily and Delia giggled at its actions.

"Very nice choice Delia. I think you too make a nice pairing." The professor said with a big smile. Delia returned the smile, stood back up with the grass-type still in her arms and walked away from the table to let the others get their starter.

David was about to go next when he felt a hand grab his shoulder. He turned to find that the owner of the hand was Michael. Michael had a grin on his face that, quite frankly, made David feel uneasy. "How about we both go at the same time Ketchum? Neither of us sees which one we pick. We just pick it up, throw it in the air and see what happens. Sound good?"

Though a part of David wasn't too sure about this idea, a more adventure seeking side of his mind was yelling at him to go for it. _'A great Pokémon trainer is always able to adapt to the unexpected.' _He thought to himself. After a moment, he looked at Michael and nodded.

They both approached the table at the same time and looked at each other rather than the spheres. After a few seconds of staring, both boys reached a hand out and grabbed a Pokéball. Once each sphere was in their hands, they threw them into the air. When David's Pokéball opened, a small, red, reptilian looking creature with a flame on it's tale appeared.

"Charmander Char!" It yelled happily as it ran into David. The full force sending him to the ground.

"Awesome! A charmander!" He exclaimed happily, hugging the little fire-type.

Meanwhile, Michael's Pokéball opened to reveal a small, blue, turtle-like creature. It looked at it's surroundings, then at it's trainer. It crossed it's arms and gave an all too familiar cocky smirk.

"Squirtle." It greeted it's trainer coolly.

"Alright! A Squirtle." Michael exclaimed, punching his fist to the air.

"Nice choice you two." The professor said. Delia walked up to David, Bulbasaur now walking by her side.

"He seems to like you." She said in a cheery, petting the litle fire-type now on David's head.

"Yeah. Your Bulbasaur seems to have warmed up to you pretty quick." David knelt down and pet the little grass-type who let off a content sigh in response.

"Yeah, she's adorable. we can't wait to start training. Right Bulby?" Bulbasaur cried in determination and jumped up in the air.

They heard a snort from behind, causing the trainers and their Pokémon to look in the direction of the snort. The trainers weren't surprised to see that it came from Michael. Both him and Squirtle had cocky grins on their faces.

"If you think you're gonna be able to train a Pokémon to be able to battle you're delusional. At best you could train it to help with gardening." Both Delia and Bulbasaur shot daggers at the trainer and his Pokémon.

"Oh yeah?! I bet I could train a lot better than you!" Delia snapped.

"Sweetheart, no one can train better than me. I'm just that awesome." Michael puffed out his chest and stuck his nose in the air, Squirtle mimicking the same action.

Delia's blood began to boil. "If you think you're SO great, why don't we have a battle to decide whose better."

Michael cocked an eyebrow at this. "You? Battle me?"

"Did I stutter?" Delia and Bulbasaur had determined looks on their faces. Michael looked at Squirtle who nodded. Michael nodded back and looked at Delia with a grin.

"Alright Sweet stuff, Let's battle."

* * *

Delia, David, Michael Professor Oak and the Pokémon all stood on a field at the back of the professor's lab. Delia and Bulbasaur took a position on the field and Michael followed suit with Squirtle. Professor Oak stood on the side lines and raised both hands in the air. "This will be a one-on-one battle between Delia Summers and Michael Oak. Trainers ready... BEGIN!"

"Let's do this Bulby!" Delia called out.

Bulbasaur jumped onto the field and growled at its opponent.

"Alright Squirtle, let's show dearest Delia how to be tough!" Squrrtle jumped on to the field and stood in a battle ready stance. It's eyes filled with the same determination as it's trainer.

"Alright Squirtle, use..." Michael stopped after realising something. "Hey dad?"

"Yes Michael, is something wrong?" The professor asked.

Michael put his hand on the back of his head and smiled sheepishly. "What attacks do our Pokémon know?" Everyone, Pokémon included, collapsed to the ground at Michael's question.

After picking himself up, Professor Oak answered his question. "Squirtle knows tackle, tail-whip and growl, Bulbasaur knows tackle, scratch and growl and Charmander knows tackle, tail-whip and leer."

Michael and Delia nodded in thanks and got back to the battle at hand.

"Alright Squirtle, tackle attack!"

The turtle Pokémon ran towards Bulbasaur at full speed. "Quick, dodge and use scratch!" Delia countered. Bulbasaur complied and managed to dodge the on coming water-type. It was just about to use scratch, when

"Squirtle quick, use tail-whip." Michael commanded.

Complying with it's trainer's order, Squirtle spun its tail at Bulbasaur and hit it head on. Bulabsaur rolled back on the ground but then jumped back up on all fours.

"Are you alright Bulby?" Delia asked in concern. Bulbasaur nodded in confirmation and stared down Squirtle. "Bulby, use growl!" Bulbasaur complied and gave a fierce growl which intimidated the turtle a little thus letting its guard down. This would prove to be a mistake.

"Now Bulby, use tackle." Bulbasaur ran at full speed towards Squirtle and hit it head on. Squirtle moaned in pain and fell to the ground.

"Squirtle, are you okay?!" Michael cried. Squirtle stood up, albeit, a little slowly and took a battle stance once again.

"You have to admire Squirtle's determination. It really wants to win." The professor commented on the side lines to David. David was sitting on a bench watching the battle closely with Charmander on his lap who was also watching with great interest.

"Alright, Squirtle! Use tail-whip!" Squirtle ran towards Bulbasaur again, jumped in the air and swung its tail towards the grass-type.

"Dodge and use scratch!" Delia countered.

Bulbasaur dodged the attack with ease and went in for a scratch attack. "Dodge and use tackle!" Michael countered. Squirtle dodged the scratch attack and dove head first into Bulbasaur's stomach.

"Now, use tail-whip." Squirtle complied and swung its tail at Bulbasaur. This time hitting it dead on. Bulbasaur let out a cry of pain and fell the the ground.

"Oh no, Bulby!" Delia cried in worry.

Bulbasaur tried to get back up with all it's strength but was having great difficulty. "Come on, Bulby! You can do it!" Delia cheered. Hearing it's master's voice, Bulbasaur got a second wind and stood back up. A look of determination etched all over it's face.

Michael smirked. "Let's end this."

"Squirtle!"

"Bulby!"

"TACKLE ATTACK!"

Both Pokémon charged towards each other at incredible speed. They met in the middle and a small cloud of dust appeared. Everyone was waiting in anticipation to see who won. When the smoke finally cleared, everyone gasped.

"Bulbasaur is unable to battle. The match goes to Michael Oak." Professor Oak announced.

Delia ran over to Bulbasaur and picked it up in her arms. "You were great Bulby. I'm very proud of you." Delia said with a smile. Bulbasaur smiled back and cuddled up to it's trainer.

Michael picked squirtle up in his arms and danced around with the turtle. "You did awesome Squirtle! Totally mopped the floor with her." Squirtle gave a thumbs up and Michael chuckled. He then pulled out a Pokéball and held it in front of Squirtle. "Take a long rest. You earned it. Return." In a flash of red, Squrtle disappeared. Delia then approached Michael.

"So, whose better?" Michael said, putting a hand to his ear to pretend to try and hear better. Delia's right eye twitched and she desperately tried to suppress the urge to smack the cocky grin off his face.

"Whatever. Next time we'll kick your butt from here to Goldenrod."

Michael's grin, if it were possible, grew even more cocky. "Don't bet on it sweetheart. We'll always be stronger."

"Don't count on it, Oak."

Michael just chuckled and turned to walk in the direction of the forest between Pallet and Viridian. "I'm outta here."

"Good look on your journey son. Be careful." The professor said.

"Don't need luck, dad." Michael said, giving the V for victory sign.

The group of people and Pokémon watched as Michael disappeared from site. The professor then turned to Delia and David. "So, where are you two headed?" David was the first to speak.

"I'm heading back to Viridian. I'm meeting up with a friend there and we're gonna continue on to Pewter from there."

"Any chance I can tag along?"

David turned to see Delia who was looking shyly down at the ground. "It's just-uh-I'm nervous with doing this on my own and-uh..."

"I think that's a great idea." The professor exclaimed suddenly. "It's great to have a travelling companion on Pokemon journeys. You can both share the experiences then."

David thought over this for a moment before answering. "Sure, I don't mind at all." Delia's face lit up at this and she surprised both David and herself when she gave him a bear hug. Realising what she was doing, she instantly pulled away from David. Traces of a blush on both their faces.

The Professor watched this and smiled warmly. _'So she's the one.' _He thought to himself.

**Yeah! Chapter three done, ladies and gentlemen. This was a pain to write. I had the idea, I just couldn't word it right. Finally got it done though. Thought it was a little slow at the start but hey, it picked up. I apologise if the battle wasn't too good, I'm not that good with them. Yet. **

**Also thank you DeathGoblin for the advice on paragraphing I tried my best to do what you advised, not really sure if I got it right but thanks all the same.**

**So what'd you guys think? Leave a review and let me know.**

**I'll probably do a one-shot next and then get back to work on this so until then, live long and prosper and may the force be with you.**


	4. The Bet

**Chapter four, ladies and gentlemen. I know at the end of the last chapter I said I'd post a one-shot next but then I thought to myself 'I'll focus on getting this story done first, then I'll focus on other stories.' So, I hope you enjoy and I'll see you at the end.**

**Disclaimer: **You know I don't own Pokémon. Or do I? *dun dun dun* No, no I don't.

**On with the story:**

* * *

**Chapter 4: **The Bet

**[Four days later]**

Delia and Georgiou sat on a couch in the lobby of the Viridian city Pokémon center waiting for David to arrive.

"Explain to me how this happened again. I still don't understand." Georgiou spoke up.

Delia was lying down on the couch with her hands behind her head. She let out a sigh before speaking. "Okay, for the last time..."

* * *

**[Four days ago: forest between Pallet and Viridian]**

"So, tell me about yourself, Delia." Came David's voice as he was climbing up a tree.

Both David and Delia had been wondering through the great forest between Pallet and Viridian City for an hour now and had stopped to rest.

"Nothing much to tell, really." Delia said as she reached into her bag and pulled out what looked like a blue lunchbox with a picture of a Pikachu on the front. She opened it, pulled out a sandwich and continued while she ate. "I was born in Pallet, my mom works as a nurse at the towns local hospital, I helped out the professor with his research before starting my journey and... what on earth are you doing?"

Delia watched in confusion as David struggled to climb up a large tree. "Trying to get a better view of where we are from up here." He said nonchalantly.

He grabbed on to a branch closest to him and attempted to pull himself up. Before he could pull up further however, the sound of snapping could be heard. David's eyes widened as he turned to the source of the sound and saw that the branch he was holding was about to break. Before David had time to react, the branch snapped and he fell to the ground with a loud 'thud'.

"Are you alright?" Delia asked in concern as she ran over to him.

David stood up, albeit very slowly, and looked very groggy. "Yes, I am a pretty girl." He said before falling to the ground face first. Delia sweat-dropped and helped David back onto his feet. Once he was able to stand firmly on the ground, Delia sat back down next to her lunch box, shaking her head while she did.

"It's a good thing I asked to tag along. I doubt you'd last two minutes out here on your own." She said with a smirk.

"And what's that supposed to mean?" David asked, giving Delia an incredulous look. Delia shrugged. "Exactly that. You wouldn't be able to last very long out here alone. But don't worry Davy, I'll protect you." Delia's tone and smile turned into that of teasing ones.

David looked wide eyed at Delia. "Now look here country girl, I'm willing to bet that I'd last a lot longer than you could in this forest. In fact, I'm willing to bet that I'd make it to Viridian City before you." David gave a cocky smile and puffed his chest out at his declaration.

"Alright Ketchum. You're on." Delia said, standing up and holding her hand out for David to shake. "First one to Viridian City Pokémon Center wins." David thought for a moment then took the offered hand and shook it.

"Alright, and the loser has to carry the others backpack for a week." David added.

"Deal." Delia said before they both took their hands away.

Both David and Delia packed what ever they had removed from their bags and headed off in different directions.

"You're going down country girl!" David called out.

"Don't count on it city boy!" Delia called back.

* * *

**[Day 1]**

Delia had been wondering through the thick forest for forty-five minutes and so far she hadn't seen a single Pokémon. The forest was very dense and felt very isolated.

_'Getting a little lonely.'_ She thought to herself. _'I know.'_

Reaching to the belt on her shorts, Delia pulled out a Pokéball and threw it into the air. "Bulby, I choose you!" In a flash of white light her little grass-type appeared with a big smile.

"Bulba Saur!" she greeted happily as she ran into Delia's open arms.

"Hello Bulby." She greeted cheerfully.

Bulby nuzzled into Delia and she couldn't help but giggle at Bulby's actions. "Come on. Let's find the way out of here." She said in a cheery way. Bulby nodded in agreement and the two began walking through the dense forest.

The forest was eerily quiet as they walked, Delia could feel Bulby shaking slightly in her arms. She hugged her a little more tightly to reassure her that everything was okay. It must've worked Because Delia felt Bulby's shaking stop after that. She looked down at her and smiled at how brave she was. They both stopped suddenly when they heard a noise coming from some bushes up ahead. Delia heard Bulby growl at the possible danger from her arms.

"It's okay Bulby." She reassured. "Whatever's in there, we can handle it."

Bulby gave a confident nod and hopped out of Delia's arms and on too the ground. Ready for whatever was about to hop out of the bushes.

After a few more seconds of noises and rustling, a small purple Pokémon with a long tail that curled at the end, a whisker on either cheek and two sharp front teeth appeared. It saw Delia and Bulby and took a battle stance.

"A Rattata." Delia exclaimed under her breath.

Before she could react, Rattata charged towards Delia and Bulby. It hit Bulby with a tackle and she fell back before jumping forward on all fours, ready to battle.

"Are you okay Bulby?" Delia asked in concern.

Bulby gave a nod and continued to stare down Rattata. Smiling, Delia pointed at their opponent and called out,

"Alright Bulby, tackle!"

Bulby ran towards Rattata at full speed and hit it at full force in the stomach. Rattata gasped for air as it tried to stand back up. It managed to get back up and jumped at Bulby, its fangs in full view. Before Delia could call out an order, Rattata bit down on Bulby who cried in pain. Bulby managed to shake Rattata off and jumped back to put as much distance between her and it as possible.

"Quick, use scratch!"

Bulby complied and lunged at Rattata at full speed. Its claws made contact with Rattata who winced in pain at the constant scratches it was receiving. Once Bulby was finished, Rattata struggled to move forward. After three steps it fell to the ground, fainted from fatigue. Not wasting another second, Delia pulled out a Pokéball and threw it towards the purple rat Pokémon.

"Pokéball go!" She yelled as the sphere flew out of her hand and towards Rattata.

Upon contact with Rattata, the Pokéball opened and Rattata was sucked into it in a flash of red. The ball moved from side to side for a while. Delia and Bulby stood in anticipation at what the result would finally be. After a few more movements, the sphere finally stopped moving and the red light in the center disappeared, indicating that the Rattata was caught. Delia walked up to the Pokéball with Bulby by her side, picked it up and began jumping up and down with glee.

"Alright! I caught a Rattata!" She cheered.

"Bul Bulbasaur!" Bulby exclaimed happily as it jumped up and down in joy.

Deciding to wait until it had rested for a bit before Delia introduced herself and Bulby, she put Rattata's ball on her belt and Bulby jumped back into her arms. They then began walking through the forest again. Taking in the surroundings.

* * *

After a full two hours of walking, Delia decided that her and Bulby would take a break near a lake they stumbled across connecting to a river. The lake itself, was magnificent. It was fairly big with a waterfall coming down from a nearby hill. All kinds of water Pokémon could be seen swimming through the crystal clear water. Bulby and Delia sat on a large rock near the lake and just relaxed.

_'This would be a perfect fishing spot.' _Delia thought to herself. _'It's a shame I don't have a fishing rod.'_

Sighing, Delia took her bag off, put it behind her and laid on the ground with her head resting on the bag. Bulby jumped up onto her stomach and made herself comfortable. Sighing, they both laid there for a while, just enjoying the sound of the forest.

'_I could definitely stay here forever.' _Delia thought happily.

Delia suddenly sat up once she realised something. Bulby noticed her trainer's sudden movements and looked up at Delia quizzically.

"Shall we introduce ourselves to our new friend, Bulby?" She asked with a smile as she took out Rattatas Pokéball.

Bulby nodded excitedly and Delia couldn't help but giggle at her excitement. Bulby hopped off of her and Delia stood up. Looking at the sphere in her right hand, she smiled and tossed it into the air.

"Rattata, come on out and introduce yourself!"

The ball burst open and in a flash of white light Rattata appeared. He jumped up and down in excitement with a huge smile on his face. Laughing, Delia and Bulby approached the little rat Pokémon and Delia knelt down in front of it.

"Hello, Rattata. I'm Delia, this is my friend Bulby. It's very nice to meet you." Delia greeted cheerfully, a warm smile on my face.

Bulby did the same and Rattata began chattering happily and jumping up and down. We all laughed and played around for a while.

"Oh, I almost forgot." Delia said as she picked up her bag and opened it, pulling out the camera. Bulby and Rattata watched on in fascination and curiosity at the device in Delia's hand. Looking at them both, she smiled at them.

"I need to get a picture of you both for my journal." She explained with a smile.

Both Bulby and Rattata jumped up and down happily and Delia giggled at their excitement. They were acting like little kids at Christmas. Once Delia calmed them down, she got Bulby to sit in front of her while she pointed the camera at her.

"Smile." Delia said happily.

Bulby smiled at the camera and Delia took the picture. She repeated this action with Rattata and the little rat was more than happy to have his picture taken. After the pictures were taken Delia stuck them in the journal and put the book back in her bag. Once she stood up and looked at the sky Delia only then realised how late it was.

The sky was a beautiful mix of oranges, reds, yellows and golds. A few stars were starting to appear. Delia let out a content sigh at the image in front of her and her Pokémon followed suit.

"We should get a fire started and camp here for the night." Delia told her Pokémon.

They nodded in agreement and they all split up to get the stuff they needed to set up a camp. Delia gathered the fire wood, Rattata found some berries for himself and Bulby, and Bulby found a few fruits for Delia.

After they had gotten what they needed, the three of them sat around the campfire in a comfortable silence eating the berries and fruit. While eating, Delia's thoughts went from the day she had, to David. She couldn't help thinking about what he might be doing right now and how his day went.

_'Did he catch any Pokémon? Did he find a place as nice as this to camp? is he alright?'_ Delia didn't know why she thought that last part. _'__Honestly, who worries about someone they've literally only known for a day? Well, two days if you count when we first met, but that's besides the point.'_

Delia then began to wonder why she asked if she could tag along with him. Yeah she was little scared to go alone but still.

_'__I hardly know anything about him other than he's from Viridian, he's got a slight ego, he's rude, he purposely calls me country girl to egg me on. Though, he does seem like a nice person and I'll admit aside from being annoying he can be funny, sarcastic, but still funny. And he does seem to share the same love for Pokémon as me.' _As these thoughts were going through her head, Delia went to her bag and took out her sleeping bag.

As Delia rolled out her sleeping bag she decided to let Bulby and Rattata sleep outside their Pokéballs tonight. Delia went behind and tree and changed into her pajamas. As she climbed into the bag, she made some room to allow Bulby and Rattata to fit in. Once they were all settled, they relaxed and allowed the sound of the forest lull them to sleep.

"Goodnight." Delia said quietly.

"Bulba."

"ta."

* * *

**[Day 2]**

Delia woke to the sun shining down from the sky onto her face, the rays warming her skin as it did. She looked to both her sides and saw that Rattata and Bulby were still sound asleep. Not wanting to wake either of them, Delia slowly and carefully got out of the sleeping bag, grabbed her bag and went to the lake to have a wash.

Once she finished washing up, Delia changed into her traveling outfit. A dark-pink sleeveless t-shirt, a green checkered short sleeved shirt buttoned up over it, light-black shorts, white socks and a pair of brown shoes. She then tied her hair into two pigtails.

Her mom picked the outfit for her saying 'It's stylish yet respectable and is perfect for traveling.' Delia had to agree with her there. It was definitely stylish and respectable. Good for traveling however? _'Well we'll wait and see how handy shorts come in if we travel up one of those snowy mountains.' Delia thought._

Delia was on her way back to her sleeping bag to wake the Pokémon. She stopped half way however, when she noticed that they were already awake and running around chasing each other. Delia smiled at the sight and went to roll up the sleeping bag and put it back in her bag. Once she got that out of the way Delia returned Bulby to her Pokéball and was about to return Rattata.

"Alright Rattata. Time go back in your Pokéball." She exclaimed, pointing the sphere at Rattata.

"Ratt ata." He said, shaking his head furiously.

Delia looked at him in confusion. "What's wrong Rattata? Don't you want to go back into your ball?" She asked softly.

Rattata shook his head again.

"Do you not like being in your Pokeball?"

Rattata nodded.

Delia sighed and put his Pokéball on her belt and held her arm out. "Hop on then." she said with a smile. Rattata jumped up happily and ran up Delia's arm, sitting himself on her left shoulder. Laughing, she scratched behind his ear and then they went onward towards Viridian.

While they were walking, a thought suddenly came to Delia's mind.

"Hey Rattata. I just realised, I never asked what moves you know."

Rattata looked up at the sky as if thinking and then looked back at Delia, nodding as if to confirm that she was right. He then jumped off of her shoulder and began looking around for something. After a minute or two, Rattata found whatever it was he was looking for and gestured for Delia to watch. Nodding, Delia sat down and watched Rattata's little demonstration.

Rattata stared down his target, which in this case was a small tree that probably reached just past Delia's knees. After a moment, Rattata charged at the tree and jumped into the air with his fangs out. Once he was close enough, Rattata bit down on one of the branches and cut it clean off. Delia looked on with wide eyes and applauded.

"Well done Rattata. Was that bite?" She asked with a smile.

"Ata." Rattata nodded. He then stared down that same tree again and swung his claws at it.

"Scratch?" Delia asked.

Rattata nodded again. He then turned to face the tree a third time and charged at it at full speed for a tackle attack. However, Rattata overshot his target and ran straight past the small tree and hit a much larger one head first. the tree shook slightly and Rattata fell to the ground holding his head in pain. Seeing this, Delia instantly shot up and ran over to the hurt Pokémon.

"Rattata! Are you okay?" She asked with great concern.

Rattata continued rubbing his head but looked up at his concerned trainer and nodded. Delia sighed in relief and picked Rattata up into her arms.

"You need to be more careful Rattata. You could've seriously injured yourself." Delia explained as she rocked the purple rat in her arms. He nodded and looked down sadly.

"Oh don't be sad. That's why we train. To get better at these kinds of things." She comforted.

Rattata nodded but he still didn't look any happier. So, after a quick thought Delia knew exactly what to do. She began tickling the down trodden Pokémon. He laughed in her arms as she kept tickling his little stomach. After a minute, Delia stopped and Rattata looked up at her with a smile which she returned.

"Better?" She asked

Rattata nodded and hopped back onto Delia's shoulder and licked her cheek in thanks. Delia giggled and they began walking again. Delia made it two steps before hearing strange sounds coming from above. Both Rattata and Delia looked up to the source of the noise and their eyes widened and mouths gaped at what they saw.

Surrounding them on every tree were a large family of Beedrill. It turns out the tree Rattata hit was a part of their nest, as the top of the tree was filled with Kakuna. Delia began to slowly back away with Rattata on her shoulder. She was nearly in the clear until,

'SNAP'

Delia stood on the branch Rattata bit off of the small tree and broke it. This got the Beedrill mad as they began flying in the air and dove towards them. Screaming, Delia turned and ran in the direction of Viridian City. Rattata clinging to her for dear life. Delia quickly took him in her arms while still running and began sprinting at full speed away from the attacking Pokémon. She didn't bother looking back to see how many were chasing her, the sound of their wings buzzing was enough to give her the general idea.

Delia heard one of the Beedrill getting closer and she could tell what was coming next. So without a second thought Delia dived to the ground and a Beedrill flew past her with its drills pointed outward. She quickly got back up and sprinted at full speed again. She kept running until she saw something in the horizon that brought a feeling of relief to the auburn-haired girl.

"Viridian City!" She exclaimed happily as she kept running.

Delia was forced to stop however, when a large group of Beedril flew in front of her. She turned to double back but was met with the sight of the rest of the Beedrill behind her. They began to charge towards Delia and Rattata, drills and stingers pointed in their direction.

Delia hugged Rattata close to shield him from the attacks and closed her eyes to prepare for what came next.

Before the attacks hit, Delia saw a flash of light through her closed eyes. Opening them, Delia was met with Bulby staring angrily at the incoming Pokémon. Without hesitation a large yellow cloud of smoke came out of Bulby's bulb and struck the oncoming Beedrill. Once the Beedrill came into contact with the cloud they instantly froze and fell to the ground, no longer moving.

"Stun spore." Delia said in relief. She let out the breath she was holding and sat on the ground. Bulby came up to her and Rattata with a concerned look on her face.

"Bul Bulba Bulbasaur?" It asked.

"We're alright Bulby. Just a little shaken. Thank you so much." Delia said gratefully as she brought Bulby in for a hug. Bulby nuzzled close to her and Rattata and they just sat there for a moment.

"Time to go." Delia finally said as she stood up. Delia returned Bulby to her ball and Rattata hopped on her shoulder. Smiling, they began walking in the direction of Viridian City.

* * *

The sun was setting by the time they reached the Pokémon Center. Once they entered, Delia looked around to see if David had arrived before her. The only other person she saw in the lobby was a boy with a Meowth sitting on a couch, so she walked up to the Nurse Joy standing at the reception desk. She looked up from her work and greeted Delia with a welcoming smile.

"Hello there. Welcome to Viridian Pokémon Center." She greeted in the cheery voice that all Nurse Joys usually have.

"Hi there. I'm just looking for someone and was hoping you could tell me if he checked into a room for the night?" Delia asked half hoping he arrived and half hoping he didn't. She was hoping he was alright, yes, but at the same time she didn't want to lose the bet.

"Certainly. Can you tell me his name?" Nurse Joy asked as she walked to a computer to her right.

"David Ashton Ketchum." Delia responded.

The boy with Meowth turned to look at Delia once she mentioned David. Delia didn't seem to notice that someone was staring at her.

"Alright, give me one moment and I'll check for you now." Nurse Joy said as she began typing on the computer in front of her.

"Thank you." Delia said with a smile.

After a minute of searching, Nurse Joy looked up with an apologetic smile. "I'm sorry, dear. I'm afraid we don't have anyone by that name on record."

"Oh, thanks anyway." Delia said with a small smile.

She gave Nurse Joy Bulby's Pokéball and told Rattata to follow her to get some rest. Delia then turned and went over to the couch and sat down to rest. Though she was glad she won the bet, Delia hoped David was alright.

"Pardon me, but how do you know David Ketchum?" A voice said to her right.

Delia looked in the direction of the voice and was greeted by the boy with the Meowth. She looked at him suspiciously before finally answering.

"I'm his friend. How do you know him?"

"I'm his best friend." The boy said.

"And you are?"

"Georgiou Vanni." He said with a smile as he held out his hand. Delia looked at the hand and then back at him.

"Delia Summers." She said, shaking his hand. Delia noticed the boy's eyes go wide at her name.

"Delia? You wouldn't happen to be the girl he met at Viridian mall last year would you?" He asked. Delia nodded and he laughed slightly.

"Arceus, he wouldn't shut up about you for a full week. It was annoying at a level I never knew existed." He said as he crossed his arms and shook his head at the memory.

_'He was talking about me for a _week_?' _Delia didn't know whether to be slightly creeped out or flattered by this. Probably both._  
_

"So where is he?" Georgiou's voice snapped Delia out of her thoughts.

"It's a long story." She said with a sigh.

* * *

**[Present Day]**

"Oh yeah. This all started because of a stupid bet." Georgiou said as he rubbed the bridge of his nose with his thumb and index finger.

"It seemed like a fun idea at the time." Delia said as she sighed and closed her eyes.

"Well congratulations, your little bet might have gotten my best friend killed." Georgiou bit at Delia. Delia sat up and gave Georgiou an incredulous look.

"How is this my fault? He was the one who suggested the bet. And I'm his friend too for your information!" Delia snapped back.

"First: you've only known him what, a day? Two if you count when you first met him. Second: you said he wouldn't last two minutes without you and that triggered his competitive side. He can't resist a challenge when the opportunity arises. So if anything's happened to him, I'm holding you personally responsible."

Before Delia could say anything else, the doors to the Pokémon Center opened and a figure stepped through. Georgiou and Delia turned to see who came in and gasped at who it was.

David stood in the doorway of the entrance. What shocked Georgiou and Delia the most was how he looked. His jacket was torn in different places, he had cuts on his face and hands and his right eye was bruised.

Georgiou, Delia and Nurse Joy, who had seen him enter, ran over to him.

"David! What happened?!" Georgiou asked in concern.

"How bad are you hurt?!" Came Delia's voice in an equally concerned tone.

David looked at them groggily before answering. "You would not believe the day I'm having."

As he said that he fell to the ground unconscious.

**And that was chapter four ladies and gentlemen. I'm not gonna lie, I thought this turned out okay. I updated this chapter slightly. It was originally written in Delia's P.O.V. but it didn't turn out well so I changed it to third person instead and I think it now looks a lot better than it did before. What do you think? Leave a review and let me know.**

**Also just as a heads up, I started college recently so updates will be a little longer but they'll still come. To make up for it I'll make some chapters a little longer if I can so there's more story. Until then, live long and prosper and may the force be with you.**


	5. Fear the Fearow

**FINALLY! Chapter five, ladies and gentlemen! I am SO sorry for the delay. Writers block is a pain and when you add college to the mix it's even worse. Anyway, I hope you enjoy and I'll see you at the end.**

**Disclaimer: **Don't own Pokémon. But I sure as hell wish I could at least be a writer for the show.

**On with the story:**

* * *

**Chapter 5: **Fear the Fearow

**[Four hours later]**

David's eyes slowly opened and he found himself in a cream colored room lying in a bed.

_'Where am I?' _He thought to himself groggily. He attempted to get out of the bed he was in but once he tried, he was met with a throbbing headache. "Ow..." He groaned as he put a bandage covered hand on his face. Once his hand made contact, he could feel what felt like plasters and bandages on his face and a slight lump on his right eye.

Just then, he heard the door to the room opening and someone enter. Once this person saw David awake their eyes widened and jaw dropped.

"David! You're awake!" Came a female voice that sounded to be filled with both relief and happiness.

_'I know that voice.' _He thought.

David removed his hand from his face to get a better look at his visitor. Sure enough, Delia was standing in the doorway with a glass of water in her hand and a big smile on her face. She walked up to the bed and sat on the side of it to David's left.

"You've been out for four hours, you had us so worried." Delia said.

David looked around the room he was in, taking in his surroundings. He noticed a window to his left across from him. Outside, he could see buildings in the distance and hear what sounded like heavy traffic from the streets. He looked back at Delia with a quizzical look.

"Are we in Viridian?" He asked, coughing as he spoke. Delia handed him the glass of water and he gratefully accepted.

"Yeah, you're in the Pokémon Center. I arrived two days ago." Delia explained.

"And how'd I end up here?" David asked, lying back down.

"Nurse Joy and your friend Georgiou carried you in here when you lost consciousness." Delia answered.

"Giou's here? Where is he?"

"He's helping Nurse Joy right now. I said I'd watch you until you woke up. Much to Georgiou's displeasure." Delia said. David sat back up, giving Delia a questioning look.

"What do you mean?" He asked.

Delia let out a sigh before answering. "He blames me for your current situation. Saying that it's my fault you're hurt because I coaxed you into making that stupid bet."

David sighed and put a hand on Delia's shoulder. "He doesn't actually mean it. He's just a little upset. And it isn't your fault, don't go around thinking it is."

Delia turned her gaze to the floor, a sad look in her eyes. "But it is though. If I hadn't said what I said you never would've wanted to prove me wrong and make the bet."

"Hey, enough. What happened to me wasn't your fault. It was my own stupidity and bad luck that got me in this position. And besides" A warm smile appeared on Davids face. "If we hadn't made that bet I wouldn't have made my new friend."

Delia looked back up to David with an inquisitive look on her face. "You caught a new Pokémon?"

David nodded with a smile. "Yep." David looked around the room and found that his Pokéball belt was resting on a chair near his bed. Delia followed his gaze to the chair and knew what he was looking for. She grabbed the belt and handed it to David.

"Thanks." He said as he took the belt and removed a single Pokéball. Once enlarged, he threw the sphere into the air and it burst open in a flash of white light. Once the light dissipated, a Pokémon was now in the room. Once it saw it's trainer, it's face lit up with a big smile and it charged on top of David, who laughed.

Delia got a good look at the Pokémon and saw that it was a normal/flying-type with brown fur that spiked at the top, wings with red feathers that went light pink at the end, brown tail feathers, and three sharp talons on it's feet. It's right wing was wrapped in a bandage.

"A Spearow." Delia exclaimed.

Delia watched as the Pokémon played with it's master. David just kept laughing at Spearow's actions. David then looked up at Delia with a smile, then back to his Pokémon.

"Spearow." He said to get the flying-type's attention. The Pokémon stopped what it was doing and looked up at it's master.

"This is Delia." He said, motioning his head in the direction of the auburn-haired girl. "She's a friend. Say hi." Spearow faced Delia and just as she was about to wave and say hello, it dived on her, laughing as it did. Delia let of a girly shriek of surprise as she was knocked to the floor by the force of the Pokémon and from surprise. Delia was sent into a fit of giggles.

"Alright, I think she's had enough. Let her get up." David said to the playful bird with a smile. Spearow complied and jumped off of Delia, allowing her to stand up and sit on the chair next to David's bed.

"So, when did you catch him?" Delia asked. Finally calming down after her little giggle fit.

"Her." David corrected as he got more comfortable and rested his back against the headboard. "I caught Spearow not long after we split up." He explained. "It wasn't easy though."

"How come? And why is her wing wrapped up?" Delia asked, cocking an eyebrow.

David closed his eyes for a moment, as if reliving the memory. "Well..."

* * *

**[Flashback: four days ago]**

**"**You're going down country girl!"

"Don't count on it city boy!"

David smirked at Delia's retort and continued walking deeper into the thick forest.

While walking through the forest, David began hearing what sounded like cries of terror getting closer and closer to his location. Reaching for his belt, David took Charmander's Pokéball and flung it into the air.

"Charmander, I choose you!" David called.

In a flash of white light, Charmander appeared and instantly turned and dived onto David, causing the boy to gasp for air.

"Why do I get the feeling you're gonna do this every time I call you out?" David groaned through deep breaths.

Charmander sweat-dropped and put his hand behind his head. They were both taken out of their little conversation when the cries came again, louder this time.

"Be ready Charmander! Anything could pop out!" David said.

Charmander nodded and stood ready, awaiting the possible danger to show itself. After what felt like hours, finally, the source of the cries appeared.

A small Spearow jumped out of the bushes, a terrified look on its face and what looked like a damaged right wing. Not looking where it was going, it ran right past Charmander and into Davids leg, knocking it to the ground.

"Hey there. What's wrong?" David asked, kneeling down to be eye level with the Flying Pokémon.

The Spearow looked up at David, trying to determine whether he was a threat or not, but that would have to wait as a very loud shriek could be heard from the sky. Knowing what it was, the Spearow ran and hid behind David. David, looking confused, turned his attention towards the sky, as did Charmander. Their eyes instantly widened as the source of the shriek came into sight.

A giant Fearow was dive bombing towards them at incredible speed, it's talons ready to strike. Knowing that they wouldn't stand a chance against a Pokemon of that level, David took the frightened Spearow in his arms and motioned for Charmander to follow him.

"Let's go!" He yelled.

With Spearow in his arms, David and Charmander took off as fast as they could to get away from the attacking Fearow that was slowly gaining on them.

"FEAROW!" It screeched as it made an attempt at striking David with its claws.

David dived to the ground as Charmander followed suit. Fearow missed, barely, as it managed to rip a piece of David's jacket off.

"Hey! This is my favorite jacket!" David yelled angrily.

His anger instantly turned to fear as the large bird made a U-turn and made for a second attempt at Striking it's target. Not wasting any time, David stood up and he and Charmander sprinted as fast as they could to get away from the Fearow.

_'Need to think of something fast or we're all screwed.' _David thought as he ducked a low tree branch.

Suddenly, David spotted what looked like a cave. Too small for Fearow but big enough for him, Charmander and Spearow.

"Charmander, this way!" David yelled as they kept running.

Charmander nodded and followed David into the cave. As they ran, Fearow got ever closer to its prey. Going into their last reserves of energy, David and Charmander sprinted at full speed towards the entrance of the cave and once they were a few meters away, dived into the entrance and moved as far back as possible.

Fearow stopped mere inches away from the cave entrance and, upon realising that it would not fit through the entrance, flew away with an angry screech.

"Whew... That... was too close" David said as he took in deep breaths.

"Char..." Charmander agreed with a long sigh as he fell to the ground for a short rest.

David followed suit and sat on the ground with a tired sigh. He then looked at the Pokémon in his arms and began checking for any injuries.

"You okay?" David asked.

The Spearow didn't say anything for a few moments, still in shock from the events that just took place. Five minutes went by before the Spearow looked up at David, made a soft noise and then showed the trainer it's right wing. David winced slightly at the sight. The wing was bent outwards slightly with a small cut on it and it looked as if the Spearow could barely move it. David bent down slightly to take a closer look, anyone would be able to tell that it was broken. Putting Spearow on the ground, David shrugged off his bag, reached into it and pulled out a medium sized first-aid kit. Opening it, he pulled out bandages, two small sticks, disinfectant and a potion.

Taking the disinfectant in hand, he pointed it at the broken wing.

"This'll sting a bit." David said.

The Spearow nodded and did its best to move it's wing closer. David then began to spray the disinfectant on the wing to clean it. The Spearow winced slightly in pain and closed it's eyes tightly. Once David was done with that, he grabbed the bandages and the small sticks and began wrapping the wing up. Once that was done, he took the potion and sprayed it on the Spearow.

"There you go. It won't heal the wing fully but it'll at least stop most of the pain." David said with a smile. "Just don't move it too much and it should be fine in the next few weeks."

Spearow nodded and hopped into David's arms and nuzzled into his chest as it's way of saying thanks. David laughed heartily and gave the small bird a hug. After that, Spearow hopped out of David's arms and walked over to Charmander and the two Pokémon began conversing. David was happy to see that the two were getting along and proceeded to lay down for a rest.

After a few minutes went by, David felt a nudge on his leg. David raised his head slightly and found the Spearow staring back up at him. David sat up and as he did, the Spearow hopped on his lap.

"What's up?" David asked.

The Spearow began pointing to its beak and stomach. David instantly knew what the bird was asking for.

"Hungry, huh." David said knowingly.

The Spearow nodded it's head rapidly, a smile on it's face.

"Spearow!" It said happily.

David chuckled and grabbed his bag. Opening it, David pulled out three bags. One was his lunch and the other two were Pokéchow. Upon seeing the food, Charmander and the Spearow jumped up and down in joy. David laughed and proceeded to take two bowls out of his bag. He then poured the Pokéchow into each bowl and left them for the two Pokémon. David then sat down a began to eat his own lunch.

After their lunch, David decided to poke his head out of the cave to see if it was safe to leave. When he saw that there was no sign of the Fearow, he let out a relieved sigh and motioned for the two Pokémon to follow him. As they left the cave they began walking through the forest again, very cautiously.

"I think it's gone." David said after a few moments, letting out a relieved sigh.

The two Pokémon followed suit and the three began walking more calmly now. While they were walking, they came across a large field filled with flowers of all kinds scattered around and a small river running just along the right side. It truly was a tranquil sight to behold.

"Wow." David breathed.

The tranquility was soon interrupted by an all too familiar screech.

David and the Pokémon turned around and looked up only to see the Fearow dive bombing towards them. With a yelp of fear, the three began running once again for their lives. They ran back into the thick forest, diving between each and every tree in an attempt to shake off the attacking bird. As they made a right turn, David failed to see the small drop that was a few meters ahead and before he knew what was happening, David found himself rolling down the medium sized hill with Charmander and the Spearow not far behind.

As they were rolling, David found himself heading straight towards a thorn bush. Knowing that he wouldn't have time to try and move, David did the only thing he could.

_'Gotta hurry!'_

He closed his eyes and covered them with his hands as he was mere seconds away from the bush. Within a few seconds, David found himself rolling through the small bush of thorns. The tiny pricks scraping and digging into his exposed skin and managing to tear off pieces of his jacket. The pain was immense.

Finally, after what felt like an eternity, David was out of the thorn bush and found himself coming towards the end of the hill. After another few seconds David was finally at the bottom. He slowly removed his hands, now bleeding slightly from the thorns, from his face so he could see where he landed. Above him, he saw nothing but the tops of the trees with the clear blue sky visible in certain areas.

"Well, that could've been worse." He said with a relieved sigh.

Moments later, David found himself being helped to sit up by Charmander. A worried look on his face.

"Char charmander, Charchar?!" It asked in concern.

"Don't worry, pal. I'm okay." David said with a tired laugh.

He made to try and stand up but once he tried, he found himself falling right back down again.

"Charchar!" Charmander gasped.

David gave the concerned fire-type a reassuring smile.

"I'm fine, Charmander. Just a little dizzy from rolling down the hill."

Charmander was still very worried.

"What about you? Are you okay?" David asked.

Charmander gave a quick nod and a smile to reassure it's trainer that it was okay.

David gave him a pat on the head and made to try and stand up again. Once he was sure he was able to stay up, David turned to his right to find the Spearow looking up into the sky with fear plastered all over its face. David approached it and placed his hand on it's head to give it a reassuring rub. The Spearow looked up at David and he smiled back at the Pokémon.

"I think we're safe for now." He said in a calm whisper.

The Spearow didn't look convinced but nodded all the same. David smiled then stood back up to look at where they were. From left to right, front to back there was nothing but trees. Large trees, small trees and thin trees. All never ending in each direction.

"Well, so much for not getting lost." David sighed irritably.

David shrugged off his bag and sat down next to it. Opening it up, he took out the medium sized first-aid kit and then looked at his hands more closely to see what needed to be done. It was then that David realized the extent of the damage.

His hands were covered in scratches, left and right, with small lines of blood running from each. David could just make out some thorns sticking into his hands like splinters. The sight, to say the least, wasn't pretty. David carefully reached into the first-aid kit and pulled out tweezers, disinfectant and a small needle.

_'Good thing Nurse Joy taught me basic first aid. Guess I really did need it.'_

David, realizing that there wasn't enough light, looked up the see Charmander currently in a conversation with the Spearow.

"Charmander, do you think you could give me a little light while I do this?" David asked.

The fire-type smiled and gave a salute before running over and stopping next to David, the Spearow hot on his tail. No pun intended. David gestured for charmander to point his tail towards his hands so he could see better. Charmander complied and moved his tail a little closer to David's hands, being careful not to add anymore damage than was already done to them.

* * *

After a very long, very painful first-aid attempt, David and the two Pokémon continued to walk through the, now even more dense, forest. David's hands now free of thorns but full of scabs and scratches. As they continued walking, they eventually came across a small clearing just at the bottom of a small cliff. Seeing that the sun was setting, David decided that they should set up camp here for the night. The two Pokémon agreed and decided to go out and find firewood for the night. Though to be safe, David told them not to go too far in case the Fearow decided to make another surprise appearance.

Once the firewood was collected and the sun was just about to disappear from the horizon, David, Charmander and the Spearow sat around the small campfire, eating their dinners. Pokéchow for the Pokémon and a bowl of soup for David. As he looked up towards the stars, David's thoughts turned to that of...

**[Pause Flashback]**

"David?"

David was snapped out of his thoughts by Delia who was staring at him with both confusion and slight concern. David blinked a few times before turning to look at Delia.

"Sorry did you say something?" He asked.

Delia continued to stare at the blue-eyed boy before answering his question.

"Yeah, you've been staring into space for the past two minutes without even blinking."

David looked at Delia with a puzzled expression for a few moments before asking,

"What happened before I zoned out?"

"You were telling me how you, Charmander and Spearow found a place to camp for the night, then you were saying that once everything at the camp was set up you looked up to the stars and began thinking of something and then you just zoned out." Delia answered.

David stared at the ceiling with a thoughtful expression for a few moments before Delia's voice once again brought him back to reality.

"What were you thinking about?" She asked.

David's eyes grew wide suddenly and he looked towards the floor, as if uncomfortable with the answer he had for the question. Making a quick decision, he decided to change the subject.

"Hey, I'm kinda hungry. Do you mind if we head down to the vending machines so I can grab a bite?" He asked.

"You're not going anywhere." Delia said. "Nurse Joy said that when you wake up, me or Georgiou were to tell you she said you have to stay in bed until tomorrow so you can get the rest of your strength back. I'll go to the vending machines."

David gave a sigh but nodded in agreement. With that, Delia left the room and made her way towards the vending machines. Once she was gone, David let out a long sigh of relief.

A few minutes later, Delia returned with what looked like an energy bar. She handed it to David who gratefully accepted it.

"Thanks." He said as he took a bite out of the bar.

"So, what happened next?" Delia asked.

David finished the bar then sat up in a more comfortable position before continuing his story. Clearing his throat, he continued.

"So, the next day..."

**[Continue Flashback]**

David and the two Pokémon were once again walking through the deep forest for what felt like hours. All three were watching the sky carefully, in case their winged friend returned for another attack. David turned to look at the Spearow to his right. It was looking around fearfully and in a paranoid way, like any sound would cause it to have a heart attack. Frowning at the bird, David offered to carry it until they came to a place they could be sure they'd be safe. The Spearow agreed without a second thought and jumped into David's open arms.

With a small chuckle, David held the bird Pokémon tightly to make sure it would be protected from anything that came their way. David then turned his attention to Charmander, who was looking up at him. They both looked into each others eyes as if they were having a silent conversation. Then, after a minute, Charmander nodded and gave a thumbs up to which David nodded with a smile in return. They continued to walk until they came to another clearing. David knew that if the Fearow returned there wouldn't be anywhere to hide. The entire clearing was just a large green field with very little hiding places.

David looked to Charmander, then to the Spearow. They both nodded and David nodded back. Taking a deep breath, the three stepped out onto the field and took cautious steps. Watching the sky for any signs of the homicidal bird.

"Stay on your guard, Charmander. It could pop out at any moment." David said.

Charmander nodded and continued to watch the sky. The Spearow began shaking in David's arms out of fear and made an attempt to try and hide behind David's open jacket. Feeling this, David held the flying-type a little tighter to reassure it and give it some comfort. It worked, as the Spearow grew a little more calm, the shaking began to subside and it poked it's head out of the open jacket to look around. David began to relax a little and before long he began walking a little more calmly again with Charmander not far behind and the Spearow seeming more relaxed.

"Huh, guess we're finally in the clear." David said with a smile.

As David said this, a loud thud was heard from a few meters behind David and the Pokémon. Stopping in his tracks David took a deep breath and slowly began to turn around, hoping it wasn't what he thought it was. As soon as he saw what made the noise he inwardly groaned.

"I just had to tempt fate, didn't I?" David whined.

The angry Fearow stared down its prey with and evil gaze. David could feel the Spearow shuffle around in his arms as if it was trying to get away. David looked down and saw the amount of fear that was in the tiny bird's eyes and instantly, a wave of anger began to fill him. Kneeling down, he placed the Spearow on the ground next to him and gave it a reassuring smile.

"You stay here. Me and Charmander will take care of this." He said.

The Spearow looked hesitant at first as it didn't want the trainer and Pokémon that helped it to get hurt by this monster but then it saw the determination in David's and Charmander's eyes and slowly nodded. Smiling, David stood up and gestured for Charmander to follow him. The two began walking towards the giant bird and stopped a few meters away from it, staring at it with angry yet determined expressions.

"You hurt this Spearow, you try to hurt me and Charmander, YOU WRECK MY FAVORITE JACKET, buddy, prepare to have your feathered butt completely and royally kicked!" David said angrily.

Charmander nodded in agreement to his master's statement and proceeded to take up a battle ready stance. The Fearow looked on with amused eyes as it opened it's wings to get ready for what it assumed would be a very easy, very quick battle.

The two Pokémon began to stare at each other with an unblinking gaze. Like two cowboys in a stand off, waiting for the other to make the first move. The Spearow watched on in anticipation, waiting for the battle to begin. Then, David made the first move.

"Charmander, use scratch!" David commanded.

Without hesitation, Charmander leaped towards the Fearow with such great speed that the Fearow didn't have time to react when Charmander's claws slashed across its chest. The large bird staggered slightly but shook it off and went in for a drill peck attack.

"Quick, dodge it!" David countered.

Charmander just barely got away from the dangerously sharp beak of the Fearow. Infuriated by its miss, the Fearow let out an ear piercing screech and dove at Charmander for a slash attack.

David didn't have time to react as the attack made contact with Charmander. Charmander gave a cry of pain before falling to the ground from the sheer force of the attack.

David gasped at the sight.

"You okay, buddy!?" He asked.

Charmander very shakily got back to his feet and got back into a battle ready stance.

"Char charmander Charchar." It said with determination.

David smiled at this. "Ready for round two?" He asked.

Charmander gave a nod and took a step closer to the Fearow. The Fearow eyed Charmander with a vicious gaze, then, before Charmander or David could react, the Fearow flew up into the air and dive bombed towards Charmander. David's and Charmander's eyes widened at what was about to come.

"Quick, Charmander! Do-"

Before David could call his counter, the Fearow struck Charmander again, knocking him towards David who caught the fire-type in his arms. David looked down at Charmander in great concern.

"Charmander, you hurt bad?" He asked.

Charmander opened his eyes and looked up at his master. He slowly raised his paw into the air and gave a thumbs up followed by a weak smile. David couldn't help but smile at his friend's determination. David then looked up and saw the Fearow walking slowly towards them, eyes full of rage. David put charmander gently on the ground next to the Spearow and stood in front of them, spreading his arms out in a blocking way. The Fearow stopped a meter away from David and eyed him curiously. David looked up into it's eyes without a single shred of fear, too determined to protect the two Pokemon than to worry about his own life.

"You won't go near them." David said angrily.

The Fearow continued to stare at him without blinking.

"If you wanna get to them, you'll have to go through me." David said defiantly.

The Fearow looked as if it were thinking on his words for a second before raising his clawed foot with great speed and hitting David to the side, resulting in him falling to the ground with a heavy thud. The Spearow and Charmander gasped at this and were about to run to David, but the Fearow got in their way. They looked up at the towering bird, it's eyes filled with evil. It brought its beak back, preparing for another drill peck. As this was happening, a large surge of rage began building up in Charmander. He didn't know what this feeling was but one thing was for sure.

He liked it.

Then, without even thinking, Charmander opened his mouth and unleashed an ember attack on the giant bird. Taken completely by surprise, the Fearow screeched in pain as the flames struck its face repeatedly. It backed off a little and began shaking its head, trying to get rid of the flames and pain. Taking this opportunity, both Charmander and the Spearow ran over to David who was still on the ground to their left.

"Charchar!" Charmander called to his dazed friend as he slowly began to get up.

As David slowly got up, he felt a small stinging sensation on his right eye and parts of his face. Putting his hand there, he winced at the pain.

His right eye was now bruised and there were various cuts and scratches on parts of his face thanks to the Fearow. Speaking of which. David's head snapped to the direction the Fearow was at and gaped at the site. The Fearow managed to shake off the flames but there were large scorch marks on its face. David turned his attention to Charmander who was grinning like a proud idiot.

"Did you...?" David trailed off.

Charmander nodded in confirmation of the question, still grinning ear to ear. David chuckled and slowly got back to his feet. He then eyed the Fearow once again and the giant bird did the same.

"Round three?" David asked.

The Fearow smiled, if that's even possible with a beak, and took a battle ready stance. Flapping it's wings in preparation. Charmander did the same and moved his hand up and pointed it at the Fearow. he then made a gesture with his hand, as if to say _'bring it on.'_

Giving a fierce battle cry, the Fearow flapped its wings and began to sore into the air. Then, once it reached its intended height, started back towards the ground, more specifically, towards Charmander. Knowing he had to act fast, David began to go through ideas in his head.

_'Come on, Ketchum! Think! What do you do!?'_

After a few moments, David suddenly got what he thought was a brilliant idea.

"Need to time this right." He thought out loud.

The Fearow continued its dive bomb towards Charmander at incredible speed. It's eyes growing more malicious the closer it got. When it was a few meters away, David executed his plan.

"Quick, jump on its back!" He called.

Not wasting a single second, Charmander jumped as high as it could and managed to land on the Frearow's back, surprising it. It then began a desperate attempt to try and shake the fire-type off. David grew a large smile on his face at the success of his plan so far.

"Now, use ember!"

Opening his mouth, Charmander unleashed a torrent of flames towards the back of the Fearow's head. It gave a loud screech in pain and tried even more desperately to shake Charmander off. The fire-type continued to hold on as best it could but was beginning to lose it's strength.

Thinking fast, David called out another command.

"Scratch!"

Charmander let go of the Fearow with one arm, using all of it's strength to hold on with the other, and swiped across the bird's back with as much force as it could muster. The Fearow screeched again and began to falter in the air. Taking this as one final opportunity, David wasted no time.

"Quick, ember one more time!" He called out.

Once again, a torrent of flames ejected out of Charmander's mouth and striking the Fearow in the back of the head once again. After one final cry of pain, the Fearow fell to the ground with a loud crash. Charmander jumped off of the large bird's back and ran to stand by David. Ready in case the Fearow got back up. To the surprise of everyone there, it did. Slowly but surely, the Fearow got back to it's feet and stared at the three before it. After a few moments, the Fearow began to back away slowly. It then spread it's wings and flew off in the opposite direction, away from them.

David and the two Pokémon all looked at each other for a few moments, before finally jumping up into the air in celebration. They had beaten it.

"We did it!" David yelled ecstatically.

Charmander and the Spearow both jumped up and down in happiness before both diving on David. David started laughing followed closely by the two Pokémon. After a few minutes of more laughing and celebrating, the boy and the two Pokémon began to calm down and relax on the soft grass beneath them.

"We beat it. You were awesome, Charmander." David exclaimed tiredly.

"Char charmander Charchar." Charmander waved him off as if saying 'it was nothing.'

David chuckled and gave the fire-type a pet on the head. He then turned his attention towards the Spearow, who looked back up at David with a happy gleam in it's eyes. Kneeling down, David took the flying-type in his arms and gave it a hug.

"I think it's a safe bet the Fearow won't be trouble any more." He said happily.

"Spearow." The Spearow said with glee.

David chuckled then put the Spearow back on the ground and looked at the flying-type with a serious expression. Noticing this, the Spearow gave David a quizzical look.

"Spearow, we were just wondering if..." David stopped for a moment and turned to look at Charmander. The fire-type smiled and gave a nod to which David returned. He then turned back to face the Spearow with a smile on his face and pulled out a Pokéball from his belt and placed it on the ground in front of the Spearow.

"Would you like to come with us?" He asked.

The Spearow's eyes widened in shock. Did he just say what it thought he just said? The sincerity in David's eyes confirmed it. Without a second thought, Spearow walked towards the sphere with a big smile and tapped the center of the ball with it's beak, and in a flash of red, was sucked into the sphere. The Pokéball moved from side to side for a few moments before finally coming to a stop. Confirming the capture. David picked up the Pokéball and looked at it for a few moments before smiling. He then made a pose and proceeded to shout,

"Alright, I caught a Spearow!"

"Charmander char!" Charmander cried happily.

Placing the sphere on his belt, David then turned to Charmander.

"Right. I think its time we found our way out of here." He said.

Charmander nodded in agreement. David reached to his belt and pulled out another Pokéball. Enlarging it, he pointed it towards Charmander.

"Return for now, buddy. I call when I need you."

Charmander gave a salute and with a call of 'return' was sent back into it's Pokéball. Placing the sphere back onto his belt, David proceeded to walk in the direction of Viridian City, happy that he had someone new to add to his list of friends.

* * *

**[End Flashback]**

"And that's how I met Spearow." David finished.

"Wow, sounds like you had quite the adventure." Delia said. Amazed at the story she just heard.

"Mhmm. The day after that, nothing really happened. This morning however..."

"What happened?" Delia asked.

"I was chased by a gang of Beedrill."

Delia's eyes grew wide at this.

"Really?"

David nodded.

"Yep. It's weird though, I didn't know they nested that far out. Something must've disturbed their old nest 'cause the one I walked into looked brand new."

Delia began to shift in her seat for some reason.

"Uh huh." She said a little quietly.

David didn't take notice of her tone and continued.

"Anyway, they chased me all the way here and I guess that's how I got in this position now." He said.

"Never a dull moment, huh?" Delia said with a smile.

David chuckled and got more comfortable on his bed. Trying not to wake the sleeping Spearow on his lap. He reached for the glass of water on the table to his left and took a sip.

"You got that right. That's something you'll learn about me. Adventure and danger seem to be drawn to me like a magnet." He said after a large gulp of water.

"Well then, it's lucky for me that adventure and danger are my middle name." Delia said playfully.

"Well, that explains why you're with me." David said with a teasing smirk.

Delia snorted.

"Dream on, Ketchum." Delia said as she rolled her eyes with a smile.

They both started laughing after that. Just then, the door to the room opened and Giou stepped into the room followed by Nurse Joy. Once they saw that David was up and laughing like a mad man, they hurried over to him.

"David! You okay?" Giou asked, all concerns for his best friend slowly dissipating.

"Don't worry about me, Giou. I'm just fine." David reassured.

"You're lucky to be alive, young man! You had us all worried." Nurse Joy scolded.

David laughed sheepishly.

"Sorry, Joy. I just get careless sometimes." David said with a toothy grin.

"I swear, trouble just seems to find you." Joy exclaimed with a sigh.

"We were just talking about that." Delia laughed.

"So what happened, David?" Giou asked, curiosity evident in his voice.

David sighed, got more comfortable, and once again told the Giou and Joy the story he told Delia. They were amazed to say the least. After another few minutes of talking, laughing and introducing Spearow to the others, Joy checked the clock on the wall. The time read 11:45 pm.

"Alright, let's all get some rest. It's nearly twelve. You'll be free to go in the morning, David" Joy said with a yawn.

David nodded in thanks and Joy left the room. He then returned Spearow to her Pokéball and then turned his attention to his two friends.

"I'll see you guys in morning." He said with a tired smile.

The others nodded and began to walk out the door. As the door closed, leaving David as the only occupant left in the room, he turned off the lamp to his left and got comfortable in his bed. Just as he was about to drift off, the door opened slightly and Delia popped her head in through the gap. David sat up to look at her. With a devious smile, she said,

"Don't forget, you have to carry my bag for the next week."

David rolled his eyes playfully and threw one of the pillows next to him towards Delia. As she wasn't expecting this, the pillow hit her square in the face. David then went back to his original position in the bed.

"Goodnight, country girl." David said tiredly.

"Goodnight, city boy." Delia said with a small smile.

She then closed the door and allowed her friend to sleep. For tomorrow, a new adventure would begin.

* * *

**That was chapter five, ladies and gentlemen. I hope you enjoyed and as always please leave a review letting me know what you thought and what I could've done better. If the ending seems a little off I appologise. I honestly didn't know how to end the chapter and this was the best I could do.**

**Again, sorry that it took a while to get this chapter out but as I said, I started college recently and it's been pretty hectic. But the mid-term's coming up now so that means I'll hopefully have more time to focus on this and other stories. I thank you for your patience.**

**Until then, live long and prosper and may the force be with you.**


End file.
